Type of bind: Paperback
Format: Bargain Price
Quantity: 1
Page Count: 368
Printing Date: February 01, 2005
Sale Popularity Level: 38573
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Editor's Notes and Comments:
Brief Book Summary:
Within hours of 9/11, America's war on terrorism fell to those like the 23 Marines of the First Recon Battalion, the very first generation dispatched into open-ended combat since Vietnam. They were a new breed of American warrior unrecognizable to their forebears-soldiers raised on hip hop, Internet porn, Marilyn Manson, video games and The Real World, a band of born-again Christians, dopers, Buddhists, and New Agers who gleaned their precepts from kung fu movies and Oprah Winfrey. Cocky, brave, headstrong, wary, and mostly unprepared for the physical, emotional, and moral horrors ahead, the 'First Suicide Battalion' would spearhead the blitzkrieg on Iraq, and fight against the hardest resistance Saddam had to offer.
Generation Kill is the funny, frightening, and profane firsthand account of these remarkable men, of the personal toll of victory, and of the randomness, brutality, and camaraderie of a new American war.
User popularity level:
Rated by buyers 
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I bought this book after watching the episodes on cable. I was pleased that the filmed episodes were accurate to the book's accounts. The book itself was based on the experiences of an embedded reporter traveling with an advance unit of Recon Marines at the very beginning the invasion of Iraq. A war that, sadly, we are still fighting, apparently with the same degree of confusion as when we started. In any case, or by any road, the experiences, and attitudes of the soldier seem to be universal, though this generation's soundtrack seems to be rap & heavy metal, with a soupcon of country. What is interesting is that thanks to the methods of training used nowadays is that more soldiers seem eager and willing to kill, than in previous wars. Though the statistics show that there are still of fair number of returning vets who have a hard time dealing with the aftermath. I found the book to be interesting and engrossing, for any one unfamiliar with what it is like to be a combat soldier, this book should be illuminating.
Rated by buyers 
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Great book, should be a must read for anyone interested in the mess we call the Iraq war.
Rated by buyers -
The Book is great, I got into it after watching the very first few episodes of the series. The book goes into further detail, obviously, than the series. It makes the reader see the difference between the command and the actual grunt and how different the war is to what we perceive. All in all I recommend the book for an eye opening read about the beginning of the Iraq conflict.
Rated by buyers -
Since HBO just finished running a seven part miniseries based on this book, I decided I would probably get more out of the miniseries by reading the book. As is the case in situations like this, you definitely get more out of the book than the television show. And in this case, it makes for a excellent, very first person account of the opening months of the Iraq War.
Generation Kill, by Evan Wright, is the result of his time in Iraq, embedded with the Marine Corp's First Reconnaissance Battalion, Second Platoon of Bravo Company, during the very first three months of the Iraq War. Recon Marines are highly trained, very close to Special Forces, to work behind enemy lines. In the opening months of the Iraq War, they are used as the point of the war spear, driving quickly toward Baghdad in an effort to fake Saddam Hussein's army into thinking that it is the main military thrust. Wright, the only reporter embedded with First Recon, Second Platoon of Bravo Company, tells the story of this small group of Marines as they head toward Baghdad. In doing so, you get a much better understanding of the people that fight for our country, their thoughts on the ultimate taboo, killing, and an inside look at the 21st century US Military machine.
Whether you agree with the war in Iraq or not, this is an eye-opening book. Since Wright had acess to all of the men of Second Platoon of Bravo Company, including the commanders, you are witness to the conflicting orders, poor commanders, exposed to what it is like to go days on end without sleep, and how the men deal with killing other human beings. It is mentally exhausting reading as Wright describes how these Marines live, work, and interact with each other. Some of the best scenes take place within the confines of the Humvee, as the soldiers pass time by singing songs, rip on each other, and talk about their life back in the States. One interesting point is that there are rules to riding in certain Humvee's; no singing of country songs, no Charms candy (thought to be bad luck). You may think that the US has one of the best equipped military's, but as Wright shows you, Second Platoon is plagued by lack of lubricant for their weapons, causing them to jam at the most inopportune times, and batteries for their Night Vision Goggles and Thermal Imaging Devices. These deficits can have very tragic consequences. Finishing this book, you should have a new appreciation for the men and women in the Armed Forces. As Wright notes:
I am not always confident most Americans fully appreciate the caliber of the people fighting for them, the sacrifices they have made, and the sacrifices they continue to make.
This book will provide you with some appreciation.
Rated by buyers -
My father was an Army medic in Vietnam so I've always been partial to reading about the military experience of war because of the stories my dad told me as a boy. This is the best book about those experiences I have ever read. It's almost as good as my dad's stories. Pick it up and read it now.
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